Express Entry Category for Researchers with Canadian Work Experience (2026)

Canada wants to keep the researchers its universities and colleges have already recruited. The researchers with Canadian work experience category is one of five new categories for 2026 in Express Entry. In a researchers draw, IRCC invites only candidates who meet this category's rules, ranked by their Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) score. See category-based draws for the full 2026 list.

You are included in researchers draws if you:

1. Have an active Express Entry profile and are eligible for an Express Entry program, usually the Canadian Experience Class or the Federal Skilled Worker Program.
2. Have at least 12 months of full-time work experience (or an equal amount of part-time) in Canada within the last 3 years.
3. Gained that experience in one of these National Occupational Classification (NOC) codes:

The experience does not need to be continuous. Your duties, not your title, decide your NOC code.

This is the most common problem. Many teaching and research assistants are graduate students. For the Canadian Experience Class, work done while you were a full-time student does not count, even if it was paid and in an eligible NOC code.

So a PhD student's assistantship usually will not help them qualify for the CEC. Work after graduation, for example as a postdoctoral researcher, lecturer, or research associate on a work permit, is more likely to count, but you need to confirm the right NOC code for your duties. Postdoctoral roles do not always fit neatly into one code.

If your case is unclear, talk to a lawyer or licensed consultant (RCIC), or your institution's international office, before claiming this experience.

This category requires Canadian experience, so it is not a first step from abroad. Options to consider:

• Federal Skilled Worker Program: university professors can qualify with foreign experience and compete in general draws. See FSW.
• STEM category: if your experience is in a listed science or engineering occupation.
• Work permits: universities often hire through permits that do not need a Labour Market Impact Assessment. See Global Talent Stream and C10 significant benefit.
• Provincial programs, some of which target researchers and graduates. See PNP.

IRCC decides when to hold researcher draws and how many invitations to issue. Because the category is new and small, early cutoffs may be lower than general draws, but nothing is guaranteed. Follow results on our Express Entry draws tracker and estimate your score with the CRS calculator.

Researchers usually score well on education, because a PhD earns the most education points in the CRS. Canadian degrees also earn up to 30 additional points.

After an Invitation to Apply, you have 60 days to submit your full application. See from ITA to COPR. Prepare:

• Employment letters from your institution with your title, dates, hours, salary, and duties that match NOC 41200 or 41201.
• Proof you held valid work authorization during the experience, and proof of your student status dates so the officer can see the work was not done while you were a full-time student.
• Degree certificates, and an Educational Credential Assessment for any foreign degree you claim points for. See ECA credential assessment.
• Valid language results, police certificates, and a medical exam.

If your work permit will expire while you wait, see maintained status and the Bridging Open Work Permit.

Entering the Express Entry pool is free. After an invitation, you pay IRCC's fees.

As of September 2026 (fees rose on April 30, 2026), IRCC charges these fees for economic programs such as Express Entry and the PNP, in Canadian dollars:

Biometrics cost $85 per person, or $170 for a family applying together. Check the IRCC fee list before paying, because fees change. Budget as well for language tests, an Educational Credential Assessment if you studied abroad, police certificates, and medical exams.

IRCC aims to process most Express Entry applications in about 6 months after you submit a complete application. Real times vary. Check the IRCC processing times tool or our processing times page.

Your spouse or common-law partner and dependent children under 22 can be included in your application and become permanent residents with you. Each must pass medical and security checks.